12/16/2010

Mint Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

What do you do when you receive a box of some of the very best Dutch cocoa straight from the Netherlands? First, thank Sonya at Home Cooking with Sonya and then go and make some of your favorite cookies.

I have always loved Chocolate Crinkle Cookies. Mostly because it is an all chocolate cookie that you can enjoy anytime of year, but the snowy crinkled appearance makes them absolutely perfect for this time of year.

I had a pretty standard recipe for this cookie that was really good, but last year I bought this book,

Christmas Gifts from the Kitchen by Georgeanne Brennan, from Williams-Sonoma. It is filled with all sorts of wonderful sweet and savory recipes and creative ideas for packaging those Holiday goodies from your kitchen. But, it was the recipe for Chocolate Crinkle Cookies that caught my eye. It has 3 different types of chocolate and as far as I am concerned you can never have too much chocolate in a cookie:) These are outstanding. Crispy edges, soft and fudgy centers, gooey chocolate chips---what's not too love? This is the ultimate Chocolate Crinkle Cookie!

The recipe calls for unsweetened cocoa powder, but I highly recommend Dutch Process Cocoa for the best chocolate flavor. It is a bit more expensive than unsweetened cocoa powder, but so worth it.

I wanted to put a Holiday spin on the recipe this year so I decided to use mint chocolate chips. Wow! The mint really gives these cookies a festive flavor. This recipe is fairly easy, but there is a trick to rolling the balls of dough. The dough is a bit sticky so make sure that it is well chilled. After rolling several balls of dough between the palms of your hand you will need to lick wash the residual chocolate off your hands, dry them thoroughly and then keep on rollin'. If I am making the whole batch all at once, I like to roll all the dough into balls first then roll them in the confectioners' sugar. If I am just making them batch by batch, I keep the dough in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use as needed for up to 3 days.

The recipe yielded 2 1/2 dozen 1 1/2-inch dough balls, but I rolled mine about 1 1/4-inch and yielded about 4 dozen. I found this to be the perfect size.

One bite of these cookies and you will hear nothing but moaning, groaning, and people saying, "Oh my goodness" with their mouths full of that wonderful minty chocolate flavor and confectioners' sugar flying everywhere--cue the family dog for clean up:)

Thanks, puppers!

Please make these cookies for your upcoming cookie exchange, make them for your neighbors, or make them for your family and hoard them all to yourselves. Just please make them! You will be glad you did.

In a microwave safe bowl combine the unsweetened chocolate and the butter. Microwave for 1 minute then stir. Microwave for an additional 30 seconds or more until the chocolate and butter have completely melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, add the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a hand held mixer), beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla until light in color, thick, and ribbons form, about 3 minutes on medium-high speed. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the melted chocolate and butter. Beat until blended. Add the flour mixture and beat until blended. Fold in the mint chocolate chips. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the dough is firm enough to roll into balls, at least 3 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325º F (165º C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Sift the confectioners' sugar into a small bowl.

Roll rounded tablespoons (I use a small ice cream scoop) into 1 1/4-inch balls. Roll each ball in the confectioners' sugar liberally to coat completely (do not shake off excess). Place the balls on the baking sheet, spaced 2 1/2-inches apart (1 dozen per baking sheet).

Bake the cookies until the tops are puffed and crinkled and the edges are slightly firm, 15-17 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

I am making cookies now - after blending in flour mix, the dough is really thick and like a big glob - seems like it needs liquid, especially since you note it needs to be chilled to roll into balls - but it already is a giant ball - is this right??

Anon-No additional liquid is needed. The dough should be thick and sticky, this is why it needs to be chilled before rolling into balls. How did you measure out your flour? Scoop and sweep is always the way to go to ensure that not too much flour is used which will result in a tougher dough and drier cookie.